Millions of people suffer from migraines, some chronically. These severe headaches can be debilitating, whether you get them a couple of times a year or several times a week. You may have already tried different methods to eliminate or prevent them. Maybe you’ve tried several prescription migraine medications that either don’t work or have nasty side effects. Fortunately, alternative ways to relieve migraines and other headaches deliver pain relief to some patients without needing prescription medication. Physical therapy for migraines is one method that is getting increasingly more attention from chronic headache sufferers for the successful, non-medicated promising new treatments.
Have a Physical Therapist Diagnose Your Headaches
When you visit a physical therapist, a professional will first evaluate your headaches. They base the evaluation on your history of headaches and noticeable triggers. The results of this evaluation determine the type of headaches you are experiencing. They could be migraines, tension headaches or another type, such as cervicogenic headaches. Physical therapists diagnose headaches using various tools:
- Physically examining the neck and skull, including the range of motion in the neck
- Using diagnostic nerve blocks and injections
- X-rays, CT scans and MRI scans
The therapist may find that you suffer from one type of headache or possibly even a combination. You may also realize that a kind of headache (e.g., a tension headache) can lead to a migraine. Once professionals discover the contributing factors, they can implement the best treatment plan for your situation. Typically, the ultimate goal is to relieve tension in the soft tissues and joints. Ideally, the therapies will eliminate headaches once and for all. However, through physical therapy, most people still get headaches, but performing these treatments can help them end much faster.
Reducing the Intensity and Frequency
There are several practices that patients can try to reduce the frequency of headaches and pain intensity. A popular treatment at midtown physical therapy is cervicogenic therapy, which assists in increasing the patient’s range of movement and strengthens surrounding muscles. Green light therapy is a newer, simple treatment that works exceptionally well for some people. Yoga is also beneficial due to the stretching exercises and its intrinsic calming nature.
Employ a Combination of Physical Therapy Treatments
Physical therapy often combines treatments that medical professionals tailor to an individual’s distinctive needs. These include passive physical therapies like massage, ultrasound and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation. Steroid creams and heat and cold also offer beneficial results. Additionally, physical therapists use active treatments like stretching, low-impact aerobic and strength exercises, as well as pain relief and range of motion approaches.
Everyone is unique, so treating headaches, particularly migraines, is not a one-size-fits-all approach. However, research has found that physical therapy works well for an increasing number of migraine sufferers as an alternative to medications. Finding pain relief could take dedication and some trial and error from you as you participate in physical therapy OKC. However, you are well on your way to alleviating these debilitating symptoms. You may also even be able to get off the migraine medicine once and for all.
